Heart and Soul
by Infernal Rose
Summary: 'Everything paled in comparison to his need to get to the only person he would ever be able to love with all of his heart and soul. The only one he ever wanted to love so completely. The one he never wanted to live without.' Slash: Itanaru.
1. Chapter 1

_**A/N: This story popped up in my mind all of a sudden and wouldn't leave alone. I am quite happy with how it's shaping up. This will be a oneshot for now, I think, though I might make it into a bigger story when I have time. In other words, when I'm done with **__**There Comes a Time**__** and **__**A Whisper on the Wind.**__** For those who are worried, this story does have a happy ending. Still don't have a Beta, so please excuse any mistakes.**_

_**Warning: Slash. And you might cry when you read it. I certainly did when I wrote it.**_

_**Disclaimer: I do not own the Naruto manga or anime. And quite frankly, I couldn't be a worse artist if I tried really, really hard.**_

Naruto was a blur as he dashed through the trees at his fastest pace, his heart beating a frantic rhythm in his chest. Somewhere in the back of his mind, a small voice that was composed of what little reason he had was telling him that if he kept up this pace he would tire faster, but he was incapable of paying it any heed in his panicked rush. The small amount of rationality he had was left behind as soon as the familiar sense of forboding filled him to the brim. It was the same feeling he'd had the day the Sandaime died, the same feeling he'd had when Sasuke left. The same feeling he'd had all those years ago the day of the Uchiha Massacre. He hadn't known what it meant in past, or at least never known what was happening in time to prevent the pain he knew this feeling always preceded from happening. The pain that came with losing someone precious to him. This time though, the feeling was so much stronger than it had ever been before, that what little room for thought he had before reacting told him exactly what the overwhelming sense of dread meant. Which hadn't been much, because almost immediately after the feeling had registered, he'd been moving. Racing against the clock to save the person who meant more to him than anything: more than his life, more than his friends, more than Granny Tsunade and Jiraiya, more, even, than the village of Konoha.

The rest of the team had no doubt been startled when he'd suddenly taken off at a speed greater than any of them, even Kakashi, were capable of reaching, for no apparent reason. He was nothing but a barely noticeable blur in his rush. But even the need to keep his carefully maintained image of being an slowly but steadily growing over-eager underdog paled in comparison to his need to get to the only person he would ever be able to love with all of his heart and soul. The only one he ever _wanted_ to love so completely. The one he never wanted to live without.

He was running through the trees purely on instinct, somehow knowing exactly which direction to go in. He could feel that he was steadily getting closer, even as his muscles trembled in exersion. Exaustion was steadily settling in after running at breakneck speed for hours. However, Naruto would not - _could_ not - allow himself to slow down, much less stop for a rest. Even one second could mean the difference between losing his love and saving him. If he could barely keep himself going when he was forced to be separated from his lover, it did not bode well for what would happen if the one who held his heart and soul actually died. The mere thought of it caused a nearly crippling pain to lance through his chest and a dark cloud of despair to hover on the edge of his consciousness. So he pressed on through his body's complaints, knowing the alternative, paying no heed to the multitude of cuts that were healed by Kyuubi only to reappear soom after as ever more twigs and branches scraped his skin.

Just as Naruto's body started to slow down against his will, his eyes locked onto something in the distance. It was the remains of what had formerly been a large building, having recently been reduced to rubble. More importantly, it was his destination. Adrenaline filled his body anew, allowing him to speed up once more. The distance between him and the ruins decreased at a steady pace, and he was soon able to make out more details. The writhing black flames of Amaterasu enveloped the area, sending a pang of worry through his heart as he recognized them. As he finally reached to destroyed building, he was forced dodge the flames, trying to lose as little of his speed as possible as he raced to the middle of the rubble. He finally stopped at the sight of the two combatants next to what was left of one of the walls, both of them looking fairly beat up.

Relief and hope filled his heart when he saw that both of them were still standing, Sasuke standing with his back pressed against the wall, and Itachi looming over him. Then the feelings reversed themselves as Itachi fell slowly right before his eyes, and his world seemed to shudder to a screaming halt. Naruto sped forward to catch Itachi at a velocity that put the speed he'd used to reach the location to shame, completely ignoring Sasuke, who stood frozen in the place he'd been in before Itachi collapsed.

"Itachi?" Naruto whispered tremulously. He was kneeling, heedless of the rubble pressing into his legs as he cradled Itachi's torso gently, with Itachi's head rested in the crook of his elbow. "Itachi?!" He whispered desperately this time, his heart in his throat as he frantically searched his lover's body to see what was wrong. He ran a shaking hand against Itachi's face, wiping away the blood. Itachi moved slightly, his eyes blinking blearily. His eyes were clouded and his hand trembled as it slowly moved up to grab Naruto's. "Nar-u-to," he said haltingly, a weak smile adorning his face for a fleeting moment before it disappeared. "D-didn't want you to see me like th-this," Itachi said raspily. "S-s-sorry."

"Shut up, you jerk," Naruto sobbed, tears filling his deep blue eyes. "Don't you dare leave me!" Itachi gave another smile, though his eyes were sorrowful. He drank in the sight of Naruto; the slimly muscled body supporting his own larger frame, the golden hair framing his slightly effeminate face, the thin black whiskers that he'd traced so many times with his fingers. Those endlessly blue eyes that put the sky itself to shame in their beauty and the soft tan skin that was always so warm. Even if he would rather have spared Naruto the pain of seeing him die, he couldn't help but be happy that the last thing he would see was his beloved, despite his failing vision. He raised the hand that wasn't clasping Naruto's to cup his whiskered cheek, swiping his thumb through the tear streaks he found there.

"I was a-always going to d-die, Naruto," Itachi whispered regretfully, hating the fact, or at least the pain it brought his love. He'd never wanted to be separated from Naruto, especially not permanantly, but it couldn't be helped. Naruto's eyes closed and his chin trembled as he shook his head vehemently at the raven haired man's words, though still being careful not to dislodge Itachi's hand. He bowed his head closer to Itachi's, not noticing when his tears start to spill onto Itachi's face, and Itachi's own eyes filled in the face of his love's pain. "L-listen to m-me, Na-Naruto," he spoke once more, his breathing growing ever more labored, bringing Naruto's attention back to him as he desperately sought to get out the words he needed to say. "N-never fo-forget t-that I-I love you," Itachi's hand fell as he took another shuddering breath. "I a-lways h-have. Alway-ys w-will, no matter w-what. My h-heart will always b-belong t-to y-yo-u." He smiled at Naruto. Naruto nodded through his unceasing tears and leaned forward, his eyes never leaving Itachi's.

Their lips met in a kiss full of more love than most people experience throughout their entire lifetime, a kiss that tasted of blood and tears. Itachi's lips moved against Naruto's with all the passion he could muster even as he felt the energy leaving him. His tongue breeched the entrance of Naruto's mouth as he sought to taste the indescribeable flavor of his lover for the last time, before Naruto gently pulled away. They were still for a few moments, clinging to each other's presence, until Itachi's breathing began to slow and his eyes began to grow heavy.

"No!" Naruto denied violently. "Don't you dare leave me Itachi! Please!" he begged futilely, his arms tightening around his lover. "I love you, don't leave me! I need you!" Itachi's smile was very weak, but it was there, and heartbreakingly sorrowful. He could no longer even speak. His eyes closed. "Please!" Naruto sobbed.

Sasuke had been watching the entire heartbreaking scene in confused bewilderment. He couldn't understand what he was seeing. At first he hadn't really been able to register much beyond the fact that Itachi was dead, or dying at least, and he had finally avenged his clan. Not even Naruto's arrival could shake him from his daze, as Sasuke hadn't seen anything beyond his brother losing against him at last. Then he had slowly begun to pay attention to his surroundings once more, only to see the most confusing sight he'd come across in all his years of life, which was saying something when you were Orochimaru's student.

His brother, the emotionless yet insane prodigy of the Uchiha clan, had just confessed his undying love for the Dobe, his own - former - best friend. Had kissed him, heck, made out with him, too. And the Dobe had said the same things back to Itachi. They'd even seemed to forget about his presence. Sasuke hadn't even thought they knew each other beyond the Akatsuki's attempts to capture Naruto for the Nine-tails. Itachi was a cold-blooded murderer without a heart. He wasn't capable of love. And the Dobe shouldn't even know him, much less love him. Should be glad the traitor was dead. Had the Dobe betrayed him?

"Hey Naruto," Sasuke said as he watched his brother's eyes close, reaching out a harsh hand to grab the Dobe's shoulder. He was unprepared when Naruto snarled at him, slashing at his hand with wind chakra almost too quickly for him to register. Sasuke sneered, holding his cut hand. "What's wrong with you, Dobe? Itachi's and S class criminal, remember, baka? He massacred my entire clan." Naruto growled manacingly as he looked at Sasuke distainfully.

"You're such an idiot, Sasuke," Naruto said furiously. "You never look past what you can see at the end of you nose. How could you overlook the fact that the brother who slaughtered your clan was a pacifist? How could you ignore what is wrong with the idea that one man, even if he was a _prodigy_," Naruto spat the word out angrily, as if it was poison, "was able to kill a whole family of extremely high level shinobi in a matter of hours?" Sasuke's eyes widened and his face paled at the picture Naruto was painting. "Oh yes," Naruto smirked bitterly as he calously revealed the SS class secret. It wasn't as if they could do anything worse to him if Itachi was dead. He wanted Sasuke to regret taking his love away from him, to feel the guilt for the rest of his days. "Itachi didn't kill your clan. It took several ANBU teams to execute the entire clan for treason against the village. Your clan was planning a coup de'tat against the Hokage. Itachi took the blame for the execution in order to take his position as a spy in Akatsuki and maintain relative peace in the village." Naruto looked from Sasuke's stricken face to that of his lover's deathly pale one, still covered with traces of blood. "How could you?" He sobbed once more, stroking Itachi's soft hair.

Sasuke felt ill. His whole life had been spent in pursuit of his one goal: kill Itachi and avenge his clan. He had hated Itachi so much for what he'd done. And now he was finding out that the reason for his entire existance up to now, had been wrong. He'd betrayed his village, betrayed Naruto and the rest of Team 7, and it was all for nothing. It had no purpose anymore. It was as if the single relevation he'd recieved had been a bucket of cold water pourn onto his mind, causing him to see every act he'd done in his life with new clarification. Itachi had been his cherished older brother, someone he'd been proud, if jealous, of prior to the event that changed his life. He had just been told that his beloved older brother was innocent, and he had killed him.

He knew it was the truth, Itachi's innocence. Now that he could think clearly about it without the haze of revenge taking over his thoughts, he could remember all the little details he should have noticed before. The frequent clan meetings, the arguments Itachi had with their father and the other clan members. The strange, oppressing tension that could be felt throughout the clan residence. He could see the truth now, but it was too late. He'd already killed Itachi. He'd already betrayed Konoha, his team, and . . . Naruto. He'd even tried to kill Naruto, and almost succeded. Naruto would never forgive him, from what he could see of the pain his eyes. Never had he seen Naruto so desperate, so full of despair as he was now, holding Itachi's body. Not during the times Naruto had tried to bring him back to the village, not even the time the Sandaime had died.

Naruto's eyes were riveted to Itachi's face, willing his heart and soul to keep breathing. Itachi was still alive, but he was barely hanging on. His breathes were short and shallow, and his pulse jumped unsteadily under Naruto's fingers. He had turned his attention back to Itachi as soon as he'd been sure that Sasuke had felt the full impact of his words. "Please, Itachi," he pleaded in a barely audible whisper, "I can't live without you. I _need_ you." Naruto's voice broke and he swallowed, trying to rid himself of the lump in his throat and the tears in his eyes. If this was to be his last moment with Itachi, he refused to let the sight be blurred with tears.

He'd never felt so helpless in his life. His lover was dying in his arms, and he could do nothing to prevent it. He wasn't a medic nin, he didn't know any medical ninjutsu. He didn't even know which wound was taking his beloved from him. All he could do was stay there holding Itachi's body, and desperately hope for a miracle. Naruto wasn't under any illusions that he would be okay if Itachi's heart stopped beating. Even now he could feel the pain and insanity lying in wait at the edges of his consciousness for the sluggishly beating pulse under his fingertips to stop, even as the sorrow that was already present threatened to choke him. He wouldn't be very long in this world if Itachi died.

Naruto's entire focus narrowed to a single point: the feeling of Itachi's pulse under his fingers and the sound of Itachi's shallow breath echoing in his ears. His skipped a beat when both of them slowed simultaneously. "No," he pleaded, tears flowing unchecked down his whiskered cheeks. "Don't leave me." Itachi's heart stopped. His breathing ceased. Pain and insanity pounced.

Naruto couldn't move, couldn't speak, couldn't cry, couldn't _breathe_ as his arms tightened convulsively around Itachi's body. His entire being felt the pain, the loss, the poignant grief that was deeper than oceans. His chakra lashed out wildly around him, wreaking havoc on the already ruined building. He trembled, his eyes blank.

Sasuke jumped and swerved to avoid the falling masonry, stunned by Naruto's actions. Was the Dobe trying to kill him? He tried to get closer to Naruto to shake him out of it, as he saw that pieces of stone were hitting Naruto as well, and he didn't seem care. It was useless though. The blades of wind chakra wouldn't allow him to get any closer, and the more he tried the more dangerous it became. He had no choice but to draw back and wait for Naruto to snap out of it.

Zetsu watched in awe at the distruction before him. He had been amazed by the fight between Sasuke and Itachi, had been stunned when Itachi fell, and had been excited when the Nine-tail jinchuuriki showed up just in time to catch the missing nin as he collapsed. He had also been very confused by the scene that followed, though he did learn some interesting information regarding Itachi's motives. Zetsu had planned on snatching the blond Kyuubi container while he was vulnerable, but that no longer seemed to be an option, so Zetsu fled. He had much to tell Leader-sama after all. It simply wouldn't do if he was squashed by flying masonry before he could do so.

Kyuubi watched his surroundings in morbid fascination. The already cracked and crumbling walls of Naruto's mind were shaking violently, and the water that usually formed puddles on the floor was steadily rising, even in his cage. He had never seen such inner pain and turmoil before. Kyuubi knew what had happened. He knew everything Naruto did after all. He'd known that Naruto loved the Uchiha with a strength he'd never seen in a human before. The brat felt so passionately about everything he did that he always caught ehoes through their unwanted bond. Therefore the giant fox could feel a faint, watered down version of the gaki's feelings right now, and they weren't pretty. Kyuubi also knew that if this kept up, Naruto would die soon even without the help of a kunai to his heart or starving himself to death. And the fox couldn't let that happen because if the gaki died, he died. It was as simple as that. So the nine-tailed demon did something he knew would come back to bite him. He helped.

It had been only seconds since Itachi's heart stopped Naruto knew somehow, but it felt like he'd been in the midst of this pain for eons already. He couldn't breathe, his eyes were unfocused. There was no life in the person he loved more than the world. He wished he could never feel anything again. Surely not even the worst torture in existance could even hold a candle compared to the anguish he felt in his heart and soul. And Itachi's heart still wasn't beating. Naruto didn't even notice as the Kyuubi began to take control, taming his chakra and melding it with the fox's own red energy.

The Kyuubi was concentrating very hard on the task he had set himself. It had been all too easy to wrest control from the distraught boy he had grown to respect over time. The hard part was forcing his energy to cooperate in an act that went against its very nature. Mixing it with the brat's own chakra had helped with that a bit. The gaki was so pure-hearted that even his chakra automatically sought to heal and soothe.

When he was sure he had a firm grasp on the volatile purple chakra, the fox sent it into the Uchiha's unmoving body, glad that it had been less than a minute since the body died. It made things easier. Once the chakra was there, he wanted to whistle in appreciation. He couldn't believe the Uchiha could fight so well in this condition. The man's body was a mess. His eyes were nearly blind due to the Mangekyo Sharingan, and his lungs were diseased. No human healer would have a prayer to fix the all that was wrong with the man. Good thing he wasn't human. Or a healer for that matter.

The fox demon sent the chakra all over Itachi's body, making it more concentrated in his eyes and lungs and the places he could feel wounds. It was a lot of work, and it seemed to take hours to heal it all. Kyuubi was even generous and fixed Itachi's Mangekyo. He worked until the Uchiha's body was finally completely healed. Then he sent an electrical pulse of chakra to his heart to get it started again, before withdrawing his control of Naruto's mind and falling to sleep in his cage, having used up almost all of Naruto's chakra and quite a bit of his own.

Naruto's mind snapped back to attention when he felt movement at his fingertips. Then again, accompanied by a slight breathe, a small rising of the chest, a fluttering of his eyelids. And it continued. Itachi had pulse, was breathing again. Itachi was _alive_. All feelings of pain, grief, and anguish were washed away at the realization, to be replaced with an overpowering sensation of relief when he saw that Itachi's pulse and breathing were steady, and the small bit of color Itachi usually maintained had returned to his face.

Now that his mind was clear, he could see what the sly old fox had done, and he had never been so glad to be a jinchuuriki. _Thank you_, he thought to the demon, closing his eyes as tears flowed once again down his cheeks, surprising him. He would have thought he had no more tears left in him by now. The old fox grumbled, opening an eye. Definately coming back to bite him. _Hmph. Don't think that I did that for you_, Kyuubi said. _You were about to kill us both._ With that, the red fox closed his eye and returned to his slumber. _Tsundere_, Naruto smiled in amusement.

Naruto's eyes snapped open when Itachi move slightly in his arms, just in time to see Itachi's own eyes begin to open. "Naruto?" Itachi asked, confusion in his eyes. "What happened?" Naruto made a sound that was somewhere between a laugh and a sob, hugging Itachi. Itachi's arms moved to wrap around him in return after a short delay. "Kyuubi did something to heal you after your heart stopped beating," Naruto explained, his voice slightly muffled because his face was buried in Itachi's hair.

Itachi did a quick run through of how his body felt. He could see clearly for the first time in a long while, and he didn't feel the familiar ache in his chest that had previously made itself known with each breath of air. He felt strong, more so than he had since the illness had struck him, and he couldn't feel any of the wounds he'd accumulated in his fight against Sasuke. Itachi shifted slightly, sitting up carefully without dislodging Naruto's arms from their position. He then pulled his lover into his lap and wrapped him tightly in his arms, burying his nose into Naruto's sunshine hair and breathing in its scent. Naruto began to sob helplessly into his chest as Itachi gently stroked his back.

They stayed like that for several minutes while Naruto slowly calmed himself down, until both of them were quiet, content to stay there and bask in each other's presence. It was Naruto that broke the still silence first, of course. "Don't you ever do that to me again," he said intensely, pulling back to stare into Itachi's deep black eyes. "Never," Itachi agreed, nodding slightly in agreement as he rested his forehead against Naruto's.

Naruto smiled, and Itachi couldn't help but do the same at the beautiful sight before leaning in slightly to capture those smiling lips in a passionate kiss. Naruto was all too happy about this developement, opening his lips to Itachi's advances, quite willing to let Itachi plunder his mouth. His hands mapping the firm muscles of Itachi's back and he shifted his legs they were wrapped tightly around Itachi's waist. Itachi's right hand was cupping Narutos head, while his left was tracing the skin just under the waistband of Naruto black pants, slipping lower when Naruto moaned.

They probably would have continued, paying no mind to their location had they not been interrupted by the sound of a dislodged rock tumbling to the ground, followed by scrambling footsteps. The lovers looked up to see a furiously blushing Sasuke rapidly backpedaling from the pile rock he was standing on.

"I-Itachi?" Sasuke sputtered in disbelief. That was not what he had been expecting to see when he came to investigate after the wind had died down. Naruto glared icily at him before turning away to bury his face into Itachi's chest again. Itachi gazed down sadly at the top of Naruto's head, before leaning down to plant a kiss there, while Sasuke winced at the anger Naruto had transmitted in that look. "What's going on?" Sasuke asked in what he hoped was a steady voice.

"You told him?" Itachi asked Naruto gently. Naruto nodded into his chest in reply, causing Itachi to give a soft sigh in acceptance. "The Nine-tails healed me, Sasuke," Itachi informed him. Sasuke nodded numbly, watching with a dumbstruck expression as his usually stoic older brother gently carressed his best friend's back over the gray fabric of his shirt with a small smile on his face. Sasuke swallowed as the image of what he'd seen when he first came across them flashed through his mind. He'd never thought Naruto of all people could be so sexy. He shook his head to clear his thoughts. "What happens next then?" he asked.

Naruto's head snapped, narrowly missing Itachi's nose in his haste, and stared fiercely into Itachi's eyes. "You're coming back with me to Konoha," Naruto said with conviction. "Both of you," he added flintily, giving Sasuke a sparing glance before returning his gaze to Itachi's. "Zetsu was here and heard what I told Sasuke, but he left before Kyuubi healed you. Tsunade will make sure you are welcomed and that the truth gets out," Naruto said when Itachi hesitated.

Naruto smiled in relief when Itachi nodded his agreement, and Itachi gave him a chaste kiss. Sasuke felt decidedly uncomfortable, but nodded his head as well, even though Naruto wasn't looking at him. "You're moving in with me, too," Naruto informed Itachi with a cheeky grin, watching delightedly as Itachi shook his head in resignation, a small smile on his lips. "What would I do without you?" Itachi queried. The question caused a small sad smile to appear on Naruto's lips. "The same thing I'd do without you," he answered the rhetoric question, and Itachi tightened his hold on his lover. "Never again," Itachi whispered in Naruto's ear, gently biting the lobe.

Naruto smiled up at Itachi. His lover was alive and returning to Konoha with him, along with his stupid future brother-in-law, and would be moving in with him as soon as Naruto could manage it. Sakura could torture Sasuke to her heart's desire for abondoning them. Everything would be alright for once. Naruto sealed it with a kiss.

_**A/N: I am quite pleased with how this turned out :) If you read this story at all, please review, especially if you liked it, and give your opinions on whether I should expand on it or not.**_


	2. Chapter 2

**This is an Author's Note:**

I'm just writing this to let anyone who's interested know that I plan on adding on to this. I'm going to start with how they meet in the first place probably, and work my way up to the point I've already written. I wanted people's opinion on whether I should leave what I've already written as the prologue or make the rest of the story entirely separate until I reach the point where Heart and Soul takes place, and then make Heart and Soul part of that story. Let me know what you think please?

-Infernal Rose


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